Vacation from Marriage
|image = |imagewidth = 250px |caption = |series = I Love Lucy |network = CBS-TV |season = 2 |number = 6 |overall = 41 |airdate = October 27, 1952 |production = 2x6 / 041 |imdb = tt0763998 |guests = |writer = Bob Carroll, Jr., Madelyn Davis & Jess Oppenheimer |director = William Asher |previous = "The Saxophone" |next = "The Courtroom" }}Vacation from Marriage was the 6th episode of Season 2 of I Love Lucy, and the 41st overall episode in the series. The episode, which first aired on CBS-TV on October 27, 1952, was directed by William Asher and co-written by Bob Carroll, Jr., Madelyn Davis and Jess Oppenheimer. Synopsis Lucy convinces Ethel that both of their marriages are in a rut. They decide to take some time away from their spouses. Lucy moves in with Ethel and Fred moves in with Ricky. By Saturday night they all get bored and both attempt to check the activity of the other pair at the same time. Lucy and Ethel almost get caught spying and end up getting locked on the roof in their night clothes. Plot Lucy and Ethel are sick of the predictability in their marriages. They know what Ricky and Fred are going to do and say every morning. They decide to take advice from a book and take a "vacation from marriage." Lucy will go live with Ethel in the Mertzes' apartment, and Fred will stay with Ricky at the Ricardos'. They hope some time apart from one another will spice things up and make them fresh again. Vacation from marriage turns out to be very dull. Lucy and Ethel are sick of going to movies and want to do something exciting. So, they decide to pretend that they are all dressed up for a date, to make their husbands think that they've been having a grand time out on the time during their time apart. When Ricky and Fred see their wives all glamorous, Ricky makes up the lie that he and Fred also have dates. This was not the reaction that the women had hoped for. Lucy and Ethel decide to wait outside of the Ricardos' apartment, to see what time their husbands come in from their big date. Little do they know that Fred and Ricky decide to do the same thing for their wives' dates. The only place the women can hide is up on the roof, but they're not able to make an escape, because Ricky and Fred sit at the bottom of the staircase heading up to the roof. When Ricky and Fred finally do leave, Lucy and Ethel try to go back downstairs, but the roof's door is locked! They attempt to catch a neighbor's attention by throwing stones at her window. They also try to get to the next building's ledge by walking across a wooden board. Eventually, they give up trying to get free, and they huddle next to each other for warmth, freezing cold in their thing nightgowns. Just when things can't get any worse, it begins raining. The wives moan about how they wish their husbands were here, and when they look up, they realize that Ricky and Fred were making the "rain" with a garden hose. The couples reunite and go back inside. Did You Know? ;Trivia This is the only episode to feature a scene in the Mertz bedroom. Goofs ;Character error *When Ricky wakes-up from his morning coffee and walks towards the kitchen, Fred can be seen through the kitchen window walking between the sets to get backstage. ;Revealing mistakes *When Lucy is supposedly standing on the roof throwing a rock across the alley to try to hit Ms. Sanders' window, the rock very clearly bounces on the ground, revealing that the set is only a few feet off the ground and not 5 stories up. *When Lucy and Ethel sneak up to see if Ricky and Fred are home, they're disappointed to find out that they aren't, and they assume that they're out on dates. However, Ricky had been smoking a cigarette while playing cards, as you can see it burning in the ashtray. After Ricky and Fred leave to see if the girls are home, Lucy and Ethel should have known that Ricky and Fred were home due to the after-effects of the cigarette that had just been burning only a moment before. Soundtracks ;Soundtrack Credits *Theme From I Love Lucy (Instrumental) - Written by Eliot Daniel, performed by Wilbur Hatch and the Desi Arnaz Orchestra Cast (in Credits Order) Main Cast *Lucille Ball as Lucy Ricardo *Desi Arnaz as Ricky Ricardo *Vivian Vance as Ethel Mertz *William Frawley as Fred Mertz Guest Stars/Recurring Cast *No guest stars appear in this episode. More external links * Category:Season 2 Episodes Category:Episodes